NAME  

Tutor / Pyuuta

MANUFACTURER  

Tomy

TYPE  

Home Computer

ORIGIN  

Japan

YEAR  

1983

END OF PRODUCTION 

about 1988

BUILT IN LANGUAGE 

GBasic + Tomy Basic on later machines
Integrated software : Tomy Paint (paint program)

KEYBOARD  

QWERTY, 56 rubber keys with a large pink spacebar

CPU  

Texas-Instrument TMS 9995NL

SPEED  

2.7 MHz

COPROCESSOR  

Videochip : Texas-Instrument TMS 9918ANL

RAM  

16 kb (up to 64 kb)

VRAM  

16 KB

ROM  

32 kb (including TOMY Basic, GBASIC, and graphic software)

TEXT MODES 

32 x 24 (16 colors)

GRAPHIC MODES 

256 x 192 in 16 colors, 4 unicolor sprites

COLORS  

16

SOUND  

3 channels (2 music, 1 noise), 8 octaves

SIZE / WEIGHT 

36 x 24 x 6 cm / 1,75 kg

I/O PORTS 

Joystick port (9-pin DSUB, but not Atari compatible)
RF output
Video composite/Audio outputs
I/O port
Cartridge slot
5-DIN plug for tape-recorder

OS  

TI's own system, but a p-code card could be added, which gave access to the UCSD p-system and a Pascal compiler.

POWER SUPPLY 

Built-in AC power supply 14W

PRICE  

$380 (USA, October 1983)

 

Tomy Tutor

Tomy Tutor

 This computer was partially compatible with the Texas Instuments TI-99/4A. It had almost the same characteristics, except its main CPU (TMS 9995 instead of the TMS 9900 for the TI-99/4A).

The two languages (GBASIC and Tomy Basic) were only available in UK and US computers. Japanese computers didn't have the Tomy Basic (a TI-like Basic), but a "nihongo basic" using japanese characters and words, e.g. "kake" meant "print", "moshi-naraba" meant "if-then".


This computer, known under the name Pyuuta in Japan had no really success outside Japan. It was followed by the Pyuuta Mark 2 and a game console called Pyuuta Jr one year later.